


Five Years Later

by chocochurros



Category: Original Work
Genre: Gen, Poetry, Rhyming, Short Story, classic literature, james clavell, johnny from the children's story, oof, the children's story, the teacher from the children's story, yet another school assignment
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-12
Updated: 2017-11-12
Packaged: 2019-02-01 05:37:07
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 556
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12698436
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/chocochurros/pseuds/chocochurros
Summary: Sequel to The Children's Story by James Clavell. Finished January 18th, 2017.





	Five Years Later

Hello, my name is Johnny  
But I don’t have time to chat.  
Something horrible has happened  
And I don’t know where I’m at.  
Recently, our teacher  
Has been acting kind of strange;  
Well, really, she’s been a bit off since she began  
Limiting our range.  
When she first took over our classroom,  
She encouraged our free speech.  
She gave us candy and helped us learn;   
she Said she loved us each.

She called us good and smart kids,  
We were funny and charming and nice;  
We were “nice” and “good” and free of sin;  
“As sweet as sugar and spice.”  
She told us how our parents thought bad things,  
And they were gone to be re-taught.  
I haven’t seen them for a while now,  
But they’ll soon be back; Teacher said they ought.

She taught us how God isn’t real  
And we should pray to our leader instead.  
She gave us parts of our Grand Old Flag;  
She tucked us into bed.

She had a lovely, lilting voice  
That mesmerized us all  
She sang us songs from far away  
Sounding like a siren’s call.  
Ms. Worden wouldn’t be a one  
To give us all such songs…  
At least, I don’t think so;  
I haven’t seen her in so long.  
We haven’t seen other adults in years  
Except pictures from learning history.  
We’ve learned about bad systems with social tiers  
But our future still seems a mystery.

 

We’ve been in this same room for months and months  
I barely remember my parents.  
And I’m starting to notice that Teacher  
May know things that aren’t apparent.  
While we’re reading about having good thoughts,  
She reads something else.  
She has a stack of secret books,  
“Boring grown-up stuff” she tells us.  
We never see the titles  
But she always is absorbed   
She reads them in her spare time,  
And whenever she gets bored.

I can’t shake the feeling that something’s wrong  
Like she’s not telling the whole truth.  
I don’t know how I didn’t notice at first -  
I must have been my sweet tooth.  
At first, she felt like freedom, letting us do whatever we wanted.  
But she’s been getting stricter and stricter  
And her words sometimes leave me haunted.

I used to have an ego,  
A Spark of Creation in me.  
But I’m feeling restricted and stifled  
Like there’s nowhere I can be.

What if, after all this time,   
She never really loved us?  
What if we were only tools,  
Ready to be thrown beneath the bus.

I don’t think the others have noticed,  
And they think that she’s sincere,  
But I’ve always been suspicious,  
Which is why I’m hiding here.  
Underneath the cabinet,  
There’s a little bit of space;  
But as I’ve gotten older,  
My pencil’s approached my face.

 

Her tricks may have worked when we were young;  
Except, perhaps, on me.  
I may have been a bit gullible,  
But now I’m old enough to see.

If anyone ever reads this,   
Please remember my sad tale.  
I trusted when I shouldn’t have,  
And it’s set me up to fail.  
Know that there was an American boy  
In 2107  
Who soon will die, and for his sins,  
He won’t go up to Heaven.

I don’t know what I’m gonna do,   
But it’ll be something big and bold.

Someone just opened my cabinet,   
And my heart is frozen c


End file.
